So Much More
by sb18
Summary: "You don't need words… you are so much more." Time Lord and Tardis. A mad man and his blue box. Their own form of intimacy.


**Takes place somewhere during the first half of series 7. The TARDIS interior is still Eleven's first console style.**

* * *

With the Ponds safely dropped off at their home, The Doctor let himself sprawl out onto the glass floor beside the main console. Stretching his arms out over his head as far as the tweed would allow, he yawned and closed his eyes, willing his tired muscles to relax. Below him, he felt the TARDIS thrum curiously through the cool glass against his back.

"Just resting, dear."

He felt that familiar thrum again. It was not so much a physical feeling than it was an internal one, a feeling that only the two shared specially.

"Mmmm. Don't worry. I won't be a bit. We'll go somewhere nice later, or maybe even pick up the Ponds…"

Opening his eyes slightly, he stared at the copper ceiling, eyeing the many lights with endearment. The thrums of the TARDIS continued to reverberate against him as it always did, a sort of breathing. He allowed himself to lie there in wonder, just feeling her pulse. The notion was truly amazing, being in this sentient machine, _his_ sentient machine. Sighing with contentment, the Doctor rolled to his side towards the center of the glass platform and ran his fingers across the base of the console next to him.

"I just realized: we don't often get much time to ourselves… just the two of us."

The TARDIS hummed, in agreement or disagreement, he did not know. Repositioning himself to get more comfortable on the floor, the Doctor continued to pet the machine, feeling the rough texture of the metal and the aura of the life force it held within its core.

"There's almost always someone else on board or _something_ going on."

He turned once again, sprawling out on his back. After thoughtlessly kicking off his boots, he crossed his ankles and once again gazed around the console-room.

"But here we are… nothing going on… no one else here… just you and me."

He paused, continuing to look around him. The vast room echoed with a certain liveliness, the time vortex right outside the doors. The lights and the seemingly random devices attached to the main console moved and whirred in constant motion. All around him, he could feel his Old Girl at work, and he could not help but lay there in awe as his eyes roamed every contour of her being.

"Do I ever just tell you how beautiful you are?" he questioned.

"Because you are. You are _so_ beautiful."

Somehow the coolness and hardness of the glass below him seemed to somewhat warm and soften. It was a ridiculous notion, since it still felt like glass, but even so, the Doctor felt himself nestling into the TARDIS' embrace. He closed his eyes and listened to her hum.

"You are the most beautiful creature in the universe, you know that?"

He felt that thrum that he had grown familiar with over the centuries. Not a thrum of thanks or sweetness. It was a thrum that unabashedly said _I know_.

He smiled, his eyes still closed.

"You _sexy _thing_._"

He felt the machine continue to pulse against him, prodding him to continue with the flattery. He chuckled.

"Shameless Old Girl…"

The time machine continued to hum endearingly. Opening his eyes, the Doctor lifted himself to his feet and turned to the console. He let a hand drift across the controls, lightly brushing between each button and lever. The cool metal seemed impossibly warm.

"Amazing, splendid, magnificent…" the Doctor continued, gazing lovingly at the time rotor before him. The TARDIS seemed to purr around him.

"Oh stop being so… cute."

He paused, flicking some switches and watching the flashing lights. His chest swelled with a feeling he could not quite describe.

"Ohh Old Girl, sometimes it's all enough to drive me _mad_," he teased, delivering the last word with a playful growl.

The lights dimmed ever so slightly, and the Doctor smiled, allowing himself to lazily walk around the dais while gingerly caressing the hand-railing that circled it.

"They call _me _the mad one though; don't even get me started on you. Never really knew anyone to be madder than me, but you know, you may just have me beat… I wouldn't have it be anyone else though, you sexy thing."

There was another hum, and he giggled, a warmth that was not his own flooding him. Coming to a halt at one end of the floor, he stooped over to lean against the hand-railing facing away from the center console, his chin resting in one hand while his other arm draped lazily over the railing. His eyes continued to roam around the room lovingly.

"What else? What else, my dear? I could go on and on, but what next?"

He giggled again as the warmth within him intensified, and he felt the TARDIS' presence overwhelming him. It was a sort of sweetness that touched him directly in his soul and stirred emotions he had forgotten he had even possessed. He felt Gallifrey and his past memories of the happiness there. He felt time and all its mystic intricacies. He felt the Earth and the love he had for its people.

But he felt _her_ the most. The most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on. He felt her everywhere around him and within him.

Closing his eyes and relaxing even further, he allowed the euphoric sensation to wash through him.

"Mmm… Only you… Only you can make me feel this way."

The whole of the TARDIS reverberated with that same _I know_. The Doctor let loose another long sigh as he felt himself drunkenly swaying on his toes.

He didn't know how much time he spent in that position, but when he reopened his eyes, he looked up to see the glass floor of the dais above him. He lay in the repair swing, his legs lazily dangling from the side as the swing swayed him back and forth on its own accord. The tweed had somehow found its way off of him, nowhere to be seen.

The lights were definitely dimmer now, and he found himself nuzzling deeper into the swing-now-hammock. Despite the small size of his perch, it was unnaturally comfortable. The warmth of the TARDIS continued to seep through his hearts. Closing his eyes again, he sighed with content.

"You are perfect… so perfect." The words were spoken in a slow drawl, so quiet as to be untraceable by physical ears. The TARDIS, however, pulsed against him at the statement. He yawned and continued.

"That one time… that one time we talked, I still find myself missing it. I wish you could speak to me."

He heard the TARDIS whir sorrowfully, and he hushed her, still not opening his eyes.

"But no, you don't have to speak. It'd be nice, but… you make up for it… in your own mad way."

She continued to rock him, and he lost himself in the motions that mimicked the rhythmic sway of his homeland's grassy red plains. Her warmth continued to envelop him, and he offhandedly listened as the dual beats of his hearts began to slow to match the lullaby that was his TARDIS' pulse.

"You don't need words… you are so much _more_."

His mouth hung slightly open after the last statement, simply because he didn't think to close it. He felt a light snore escape as sleep began to cloud his mind. His lip twitched at the thought. It had been so long since the last time he had experienced a deep and peaceful sleep.

He did not think about it again though. All he could think was that they were both so _close_.

"I don't know what I'd do without you," he heard himself slur before sinking into a warm abyss. Around him, the TARDIS hummed lovingly and held him tight.


End file.
